Salvation
by chronophobia
Summary: I’m afraid of not accomplishing my goal... before it is too late. “Its name is…” he paused, blinking, then, closed his eyes. “Melancholy,” “You were ugly…” “H… How?” did you know? Sakura, Ino, Naruto, Sai, Sasuke
1. Chapter 1

_**1**_

_**(Yamanaka Ino, the flower)**_

"What are you afraid of?" Electric blue eyes searched my own liquid emerald ones.

"What do I fear?" I asked, looking for the usual sparkle in her eyes.

And saying that I'm surprised is an understatement.

…Because, her giddy eyes were _dead_ serious.

"I am… afraid of time." I said, looking at the stars, the starry, starry stars resting against the dark firmament. I closed my eyes upon hearing her stifled sobs. "Or, perhaps it's not time that I'm afraid of…"

"Ja, nani?" She asked, refusing to look at me.

"I'm afraid of being unable to accomplish my goal before the time runs out."

I smiled at her, snatching the hands that attempted to hide her tears from me. Holding both in one hand, I reached out to touch her face, to wipe those big, fat tears escaping her eyes.

She had always been beautiful… Prettier than I…

…Because she's a **flower**, and I'm a bud.

"What… goal?" She whispered through her hiccups.

"My goal?" I pursed my lips, my eyes returning to the dark velvet night sky.

"I want to know who I am… I want to know who you are… I want to know who everyone is." I murmured. "I wanted to unveil the secrets of human nature… Demo… it's _impossible."_

Ino grabbed my shoulders, holding it tightly, and forcing me to look at her. "I'll help you."

I shook my head. "You have your own goals, Ino-chan."

Ino bit her lower lip. "Then… Then, I'll make it my goal, even if it's the last thing that I could do."

I smiled brightly at her. "Arigato."

_**2**_

_**(Uzumaki Naruto and his eyes)**_

"Konnichiwa!" I tilted my head to look at the one who greeted me. Smiling brightly, I replied a simple _hello._

"You're new here?" I asked.

"Yup!"

"Boku wa Uzumaki Naruto des. Yoroshikun!" He said, smiling brightly at me. I responded with a smile of my own.

"Sakura des."

His eyes widened in fascination. "Sakura ka? Heh, what a fitting name."

"Doumo." I said.

"You're pretty…" My head jerked up at the compliment… A smile touched my lips unconsciously at the thought of the first compliment I have received.

I smiled wider as I saw his eyes… His twinkling blue, crystal eyes.

I touched his eyes, tracing his eyebrows, giggling at his confusion before brushing his bangs from his eyes.

"Your eyes…" I said. "Kirei… they're so… placid… so clear. I drown in your pools of lonely eyes…"

I stared as his mouth twitched in an uncertain smile. "What do you mean?"

"Are you afraid?"

"Sa…" he gulped in alarm, in dread. "Sakura-chan?"

"Are you afraid?"

"A… Aa." He whispered, and I watched as his clear eyes darken.

"Nani ga?"

"Of…" He seemed to ponder for a moment.

"Of solitude… Of… it's darkness. I don't want to… to be alone, Sakura-chan." His voice broke, his eyes watered.

"H… How?" _did you know?_

"Shhh…" I hummed to him. "I'm here…"

His eyes were wide when they stared at me, looking with childish wonder and dependency, of affection and relief.

My eyes then flickered at the figure behind a tree, lavender orbs peering with appreciation and happiness.

I watched as her mouth moved with inaudible words... Words of deliverance…

'_Of _purity_… a step closer to your salvation… Arigato. You saved my destruction… You saved _him._'_

_**3**_

_**(Sai and his art)**_

I peered, cautious as I entered my sanctuary: the music room.

I saw the black piano situated in the middle of the room, in an elevated stage and approached it, fingering the keys with my small fingers.

Finally, I sat down and closed my eyes, fingers touching the keys and with one final breath, my fingers pressed, a tad of music echoing in my ears.

My fingers moved, dancing and creating-- creating music… _my _music.

I smiled, as the melody intensified, my fingers frantically pacing, gracefully pressing the keys…

_Click. Flash!_

With a note awkwardly filling the empty air, my head snapped towards the door where a raven-haired lad stood with a camera at hand, his onyx orbs staring at me with interest, his lips pursed in an awkward smile.

And… with a blink of my eye, he vanished.

It had been weird, how his smile affected my perception of a stunning grin. His lips were… twitching, obviously unused to smile's graceful outline. 

Those thoughts haunted me until it was nighttime, making me curious because of its familiar essence, and as I prepared to sleep, I saw the calendar taunting me… Scaring me…

_It's almost time to go…_

My eyes closed towards darkness, and then opened to the sunlight.

It was hours later, that Ino dragged herself in front of me, dabbing her finger across my forehead.

"Yes?" I had asked.

"Save yourself," she had whispered with determined eyes, "-And show me the smile I used to know."

I blinked, and she was gone. Then,

I smiled, finally knowing why I was so irked by his smile… Because I had built the same smile in my own face… refusing to observe its proper touch all this time.

I sighed and shifted my bag, staring at my wrist watch.

_L_ike my usual routine, I entered the music room in anticipation but stopped once a covered painting blocked my way.

"It's my gift…" someone whispered. I smiled a small smile. "Go ahead… Open it… for _me."_

I nodded, drawing near his art. With refined fingers, I touched the white cloth and lifted it, revealing a painting of me, playing the piano.

Finally, I smiled, because I saw my real emotions that had danced in my face when I released my pent up feelings through my music.

"You were ugly…"

I chuckled bitterly.

"But then, when I saw you… playing the piano, I thought that… you were the most dazzling masterpiece…"

He paused.

"Who are you?"

"Does name matter?" He murmured, his fingers curling my hair from behind.

"Who are you?" I repeated.

I heard him grin. "Sai…"

"Sai-kun… who are you hiding from?" I asked him.

"Hiding?" he sounded so startled. I nodded vigorously.

"I'm hiding from eyes… that scrutinize the seen…" I turned to look at him, and he furrowed his eyebrows as if in confusion.

"Or… perhaps, I'm hiding from the society in general… I guess." He shrugged.

I giggled, and he sent me a questioning stare.

"Guess?" I murmured. "You're not sure yourself, so what's the point?"

He chuckled, turning to leave but I caught his arm.

"Smile… a genuine smile."

"What's the use?" he sneered. "It's too little too late."

"You're wrong." My bangs hid my eyes from his gaze. "It's better late than never."

I looked at him, smiling sadly.

"I'll teach you… All you have to do is… let me."

_--I'll teach you… So I could teach myself likewise…_

_Let me…_

_Let me see the _real_ you…_

_**4**_

_**(Chronophobia's mask)**_

Blood… It's getting worse, because all that has escaped my pitiful lips is blood, those crimson liquid.

I stared at the mocking calendar, and winced.

_It's slowly inching away from me… slowly…_

_I'm afraid of not accomplishing my goal... before it is too late._

**Tasukete.**

_**5**_

_**(Uchiha Sasuke and melancholy)**_

"What's your name?"

"Hn."

"Er… Nice to meet you?" I said, my eye twitching. His eyes flickered at me for a moment, his gaze intensifying as he tried to solve the puzzle called me.

I inwardly grinned.

_What's there left to solve? _I asked myself, grinning wildly. _I'm an open book._

I held out my hand.

"Sakura des! Hajimimashite."

I wrinkled my nose as he stared at my waiting hand, as if deciding if it was sanitary enough.

I smiled widely when he shook it.

"Uchiha Sasuke." He muttered more to himself. I chuckled.

"So…" I eyed the violin that he was holding in his hand. "You're a violinist?"

He glared at the floor for a second, contemplating—perhaps-- if I was either annoying or plain stupid.

"Aa." He finally answered.

"Nice. Do you know… Pachelbel _Canon _in D_?"_

He stared at me, his dark orbs searching…calculating.

"Aa." He replied quietly.

I smiled, holding the hand that was holding the violin.

"Play with me!"

And though he cast me a look reserved for madmen, he positioned his violin by his shoulder so gracefully_… gracefully_.

As we sunk into the music, I asked him… "What's its name?"

"Its name is…" he paused, blinking, then, closed his eyes.

"_Melancholy," _he said, faintly smiling.

I stared at my moving hands, dreading the music's nearing end.

"Melancholy…" I whispered, as the air hugged the last notes of the piece.

"…Aa."

"Show me…" I murmured, staring blankly at his questioning gaze.

"Show me… who you are… before I cease to subsist. Before these…" I raised my hands, "…stop playing my memoirs… my music."

He glared at me.

"You're crazy." He drawled.

"I am but a madman, whose mouth is but an escape for the crimson blood that runs through my body. Now," I stayed on my own ground, refusing to fear his forlorn glares. "Show me."

And he did.

Through the liquid that escaped his beautiful orbs.

And, through the twitch of his bitter smiles.

I beamed, watching with juvenile enthrallment the newfound beauty of a freeman.

"You're crazy." He repeated. "You're no human."

I smiled. "I am but a madman,"

His beautiful eyes glimmered.

"I told you so too." I said. He glared past my form, _looking _but not _seeing._

"Sakura-chan?" I heard Ino-chan's voice and I tilted my head to look at her behind Sasuke.

I stared as her frail arms enveloped Sasuke's confused form.

'_This is a part of our adjoined goal…"_ she had murmured.

"Omedeto…" She said.

I stared at the sun through an open window, my fingers closing in to block out its rays.

"Aa…"

_**6**_

_**(Sayonara, hime-sama)**_

"I was but an open book to their eyes… I was something that could be read as easily as the titles in every selection's front page… and perhaps… perhaps it's because of my eyes… Because they thought that I was as clear as my eyes… -smiles- Arigato, Sakura-chan… For being a great reader…" -Naruto

"I was taught nothing of emotions… I was known as the human kind's mistake for my incapability to even distinguish sadness from happiness…Thank you for being a teacher in your own way… you filled a gaping hole in my heart." -Sai

"Sakura, huh? You're as fragile as your namesake… So fragile it contaminated my control… I hate that I learned to love you and your own small ways. You made me cry through those ludicrous words I wondered why I even cried in the first place. You're crazy but… -smirks- I can't have you any other way." –Uchiha Sasuke

"_Sakura-chan, omedeto… for making yourself alive through your blank and dead lapses. I wish that you didn't have to leave sooner… But I know you… You'll still watch over us through your seeing eyes and blinding white wings, ne?-giggles- See you in heaven, Tenshi-hime-sama." –loves and kisses, Ino-chan_

_**7**_

_**(Sleep, dear angel)**_

I saw their hidden tears dripping on a cold tablet. I heard the music of their sorrow.

**Through hails and tremendous heat, you've been the protector we wished for.**

_**Haruno Sakura**_

_1994-2009_

_A loving daughter_

_A dear friend_

_A great psychologist (_dattebayo!_)_

_A dazzling masterpiece_

_An accomplished human_

_A learning teacher_

_A fine pianist_

_A madman_

_A precious princess_

_Our guardian angel_

**OWARI**

**VOCABULARY:**

**Ja, nani? **- Then, what?

**Demo**- but

**Arigato- **thank you

**Boku wa Uzumaki Naruto des. Yoroshikun- ** I'm Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meet you.

**Sakura ka? - **Sakura, huh?

**Doumo- **Thanks

**Kirei- **Beautiful

**Aa- **Yeah

**Nani ga- **Of what

**Tasukete- **Help me

**Hajimimashite-** Nice to meet you (first time meeting)

**Omedeto- **Congratulations

**Tenshi-hime-sama- **angel-princess-high form of pertaining to a person


	2. Chapter 2

A.N:

This story will be included in a one-shot collection in my other account: lazy-cerulean :D


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